AUSTIN, Texas—The winners of this year’s University Co-op Robert W. Hamilton Book Awards were announced Sunday (March 28) at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. The Hamilton Awards are the highest honor of literary achievement given to published authors at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Larry R. Faulkner, president of the university, hosted the event and announced the winners.
The Hamilton Book Award $10,000 grand prize was awarded to Dr. Jeffrey Chipps Smith, the Kay Fortson Chair in European Art in the Department of Art and Art History, for “Sensuous Worship: Jesuits and the Art of the Early Catholic Reformation in Germany” (Princeton University Press).
“Sensuous Worship” is truly a landmark work. Dr. Smith masterfully chronicles through words and pictures how the Jesuits in 16th century Germany revitalized art and culture through Catholic pedagogy and evangelization, emphasizing spirituality and individual responsibility for salvation. Lauded as a tour de force in the breadth and detail of its scholarship and already the winner of four major awards within the art history community, this fine study will stand the test of time within the disciplines of art, art history and beyond.
Four winners took home $3,000 cash prizes:
- Dr. Janet M. Davis, Department of American Studies, “The Circus Age: Culture and Society Under the American Big Top” (The University of North Carolina Press)
- Dr. Paul A. Jensen and Dr. Jonathan F. Bard, Department of Mechanical Engineering, “Operations Research: Models and Methods” (John Wiley and Sons, Inc.)
- Dr. Brian Leiter, School of Law, “Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Nietzsche on Morality” (Routledge)
- Dr. Kurt Weyland, Department of Government, “The Politics of Market Reform in Fragile Democracies: Argentina, Brazil, Peru, and Venezuela” (Princeton University Press)
The University Co-operative Society also presented the highly regarded Career Research Excellence Award.
- Dr. James Browne from the Department of Computer Sciences received the $10,000 Career Research Excellence Award for maintaining a superior research program over many years at the university.
- Dr. Nicholas Peppas from the Department of Biomedical Engineering was awarded the $5,000 Best Research Paper Award.
- Professor John Yancey from the Department of Art and Art History won the $3,000 Fine Arts Award for outstanding achievement.
The University Co-op is a not-for-profit corporation owned by the students, faculty and staff of The University of Texas at Austin. In 2004 the University Co-op has already committed to provide the university with $3 million in gifts and rebates.
For more information contact: Marjorie Jones, University Co-op, 512-322-7024.
